Nebraskaland

June|Nebraskaland

NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.

Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/831879

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50 NEBRASKAland • JUNE 2017 Mirror Image By Renae Blum T ick. Tick. Tick. The seconds pass one after another, and for just a few handfuls of time, the scene stands almost perfectly still. In the foreground is a man astride a horse, nonchalantly holding up a bottle of something – gin, perhaps? The midday sun paints harsh shadows below him. Behind him is a snaking pathway in the dirt, obviously well- traveled. Crammed up against the path are buildings – a toll bridge cabin, a bunkhouse, a barn – with people arranged in front, turned toward the camera. Off to the left is a full team of horses and a stagecoach. It is 1860, and the people at Rock Creek Station have come into a bit of luck. A traveling wet plate photographer is here, with all his chemicals and supplies in tow. He arranges the scene, they obediently pose, and afterward, he gets his money, the owner of the place gets a unique keepsake, and life at this busy stage stop resumes. Now, let's shoot forward 156 years, into August 2016. It's hot. There has been some complaining about standing in the sun too long. Cody Mobley of Fort McKavett, Texas, has traveled more than 700 miles to Rock Creek Station State Historical Park east of Fairbury, Nebraska, with all his photography supplies in the back of his pickup: batches of chemicals, a portable darkroom, a handmade wooden camera. He and more than 20 costumed people, along with a local stagecoach owner, are here to attempt the impossible: recreating the past. Getting everything and everybody in place takes about half an hour. Mobley and his friends have already spent a considerable amount of time walking around a nearby hill trying to determine where the original photographer was standing when he took the picture. It wasn't easy to find an approximate spot – after all, a lot changes in 156 years. O In its heyday, Rock Creek Station was both a Pony Express station and a stage stop along the Oregon-California Trail. Here, mid-19th century travelers of all kinds could stop and rest, and purchase a range of supplies at the ranch store: whiskey, tobacco, flour, sugar, salt pork, coffee, tea and other goods were common offerings. Before it became a road ranch, the area was already popular with travelers such as fur trappers and traders, thanks to its abundant natural grasses for grazing, Wet plate photographer Cody Mobley

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